A Pair of White Roses
by conventgirlvampire
Summary: Sei has everything to lose each time she loses someone. Maybe that's why she's always watched Shimako and done nothing else. When Shimako turns up at her apartment one night, though, what will happen? SeixShimako. Oneshot. R&R please!


**A/N:** I haven't been able to write much these past few weeks due to school so I apologise to those waiting for an update on _Withering _Roses. That's going to be my next post. Until then, enjoy this ShimakoxSei. That pairing needs more love.

**Disclaimer:** The series is not mine. It belongs to Oyuki Konno. Only the plot of this fic belongs to me.

* * *

**A Pair of White Roses**

Sometimes she would wonder if Maria-sama laughed at her. She would wonder if the virgin was watching and secretly mocking her whenever she lost someone.

Shiori was to become a nun and her own onee-sama had graduated and left her. Shimako…Shimako was no longer on the path of religious dedication but that door had been closed by another, one who was, if she were to be honest, more fitting for her soeur than she would ever be.

* * *

"Onee-sama?"

She looked up only to be greeted by Shimako's worried expression as the younger girl stared down at her. Her eyes widened slightly as she met her gaze but she did not react any further. Somehow, Shimako's very presence always made her more lethargic, as if there was no need for movement.

"What're you doing here?" she asked her, gesturing to the bench at the same time. "The school's supposed to be closed, isn't it?"

"It is but I…" She trailed off into silence as she sat, almost as if she did not know the answer to Sei's question. Sei did not mind, choosing instead to enjoy the silence of the world around them.

Silently, their hands joined together, their fingers tangling in an unbreakable bond, but neither seemed to notice. They were both too preoccupied with their thoughts and speech seemed too awkward to use.

"How's Noriko-chan?" Sei asked after a while. She liked the girl well enough but she nearly choked when she said her name.

"She's alright, I guess."

Sei frowned. There was a vagueness to her answer that she did not like but she did not push the issue. Shimako would speak of it in her own time or not at all. That was how it always had been and she was not about to change it.

Leaning closer, she pulled Shimako into a tight embrace. She returned it briefly before pushing her away.

"I have to go."

* * *

She watched them from afar like she usually did, waiting for Shimako's eyes to hers for a moment. When they did, she smiled. They always knew when the other was around, like a sort of telepathy that allowed for much to go unsaid between them and still matter so very much.

When Shimako looked away she turned only to find herself face to face with Youko. Sighing, she let the other woman lead her away from Lillian knowing that she would not be able to get away from her easily.

"You've been slacking off, haven't you?" was all that she said but Sei did not bother to answer. "How could you? You're not in high school anymore Sei. You need to start working. You—"

"I'm aware of what I need to do, Youko," she cut in, her eyes closing as a warm breeze sailed gently through her hair. "You keep reminding me every week that I have to work and you know what? I am working."

"Sei—"

"Believe me Youko, I am."

"So then why do I keep finding you here staring at the Rose Mansion?"

"Why do you…" The question caught her off-guard and suddenly she found herself groping for an answer in the dark. "I don't know. I just…I just find myself needing to see her everyday. It's like I can't let go of her just yet and I don't want to, you know?"

"I know, Sei."

* * *

The night Shimako turned up at her apartment she knew something was wrong. She could see all too clearly what a drunken wreck she was and that sent up a red flag. The fact was, Shimako never drank.

She ushered her in with a word, knowing without being told that the time for questions would come later. For now, she needed to take care of her soeur.

While Shimako was in the bathroom, she sat on her couch and called her parents to tell them that she would be staying with her. After she hung up, Sei found herself smiling at the irony of her situation.

"Some things never change, do they?"

The words were spoken out loud but she did not notice, her attention caught by the sight of her soeur. Shimako had come out of the bathroom dressed only in a robe. Her hair was dripping wet and she was different somehow.

Moving towards the couch, she leaned over and kissed Sei. It was not gentle or hesitant. Instead, it was fierce, passionate and demanding,, the younger girl's raw need reaching Sei through her lips.

"Are you sure?" she asked when they finally stopped. She knew what Shimako wanted but she was still reluctant to give it to her.

When she nodded, Sei pulled her onto the couch and their lips met once more. Shimako straddled her waist and Sei held onto her hips beneath the cloth of her robe while their tongues battled each other for supremacy. She moaned in her throat when she felt the other's hand beneath the t-shirt she wore, playing, as it were, with her breasts as Shimako's lips moved to her neck.

"Lower. Please, just go lower."

Her voice was low and hoarse as she spoke but Shimako had heard her and obliged. Removing Sei's underwear even as t-shirt and robe came off, Shimako's fingers reached into her center as hers did the same. Both girls moaned at the simultaneous contact and started thrusting and rubbing each other in an effort to regain that feeling. By the time they reached their climaxes, they were pressed tightly against each other on the couch, bodies covered in perspiration and panting as they went over the edge.

* * *

"I'm sorry, onee-sama."

"For what?" Sei asked. A few hours had passed and they were lying comfortable together, Sei's arms wrapped around Shimako as they stared at the ceiling. "You didn't do anything wrong."

"Didn't I? Noriko – she's in love with someone else. When I found out, I told her to follow her heart. The truth is, even then my heart was breaking. Then I came here and we—"

"Hush. DO you love me?"

"Yes."

"Do you want to stay by my side?"

"Onee-sama, you know I do."

"Then it's fine. When I saw you that first time I was still trying to get away from Shiori. Now, I'm not so sure what it was. Love isn't easy but it is what it is. You can stay or you can go. It's your choice and I won't force you. Just don't feel guilty over it, okay?"

"Thank you onee-sama," she said burrowing closer to Sei, "for everything."

Sei kissed the top of her head but she did not reply. Somewhere in her mind she was thanking Maria-sama for the same thing.


End file.
